Dan Cooper, best known as D. B. Cooper, was the nickname of an unidentified man who took over Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305, a Boeing 727 airplane traveling from Portland, Oregon, to Seattle, Washington, on November 24, 1971. Cooper told the flight crew he had a bomb and asked for $200,000 in ransom (equal to $1,600,000 in 2025) and four parachutes after landing in Seattle. After letting the passengers leave in Seattle, Cooper told the crew to refuel the plane and begin a second flight to Mexico City, with a stop in Reno, Nevada. After taking off from Seattle, Cooper opened the plane’s back door, used the airstair, and jumped out with a parachute into a remote, heavily wooded area of Southwest Washington. Because of a mistake made by a reporter, the hijacker became known as D. B. Cooper; the hijacker’s real name and final fate are still unknown.
In 1980, a small amount of the ransom money ($5,800) was found near the Columbia River in Vancouver, Washington. This discovery made people interested in the crime again but did not provide more details. The rest of the money was never found. For 45 years after the hijacking, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) worked on the case and collected a lot of information but did not find clear answers about Cooper’s identity. The FBI stopped its active investigation in 2016, though reporters, professional investigators, and others still try to guess who Cooper was and what happened to him.
Cooper’s hijacking—and similar crimes that happened later (called D. B. Cooper copycat hijackings)—led to quick and major improvements in airport and airplane security. Metal detectors were added to airports, baggage checks became required, and passengers who paid cash for tickets on the day of their flight were checked more carefully. The Cooper hijacking is the only unsolved case of air piracy in the history of commercial aviation.
Hijacking
On November 24, 1971, which was Thanksgiving Eve, a man went to the ticket counter at Portland International Airport. He used cash to buy a one-way ticket for Flight 305, a 30-minute flight north to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac). On the ticket, he wrote his name as "Dan Cooper." Witnesses described Cooper as a white man in his mid-40s with dark hair and brown eyes. He wore a black or brown business suit, a white shirt, a thin black tie, a black raincoat, and brown shoes. He carried a black attaché case and a brown paper bag. Cooper boarded Flight 305, a Boeing 727-100. He sat in seat 18-E, the last row, and asked a flight attendant for a drink: bourbon and 7-Up.
Flight 305 had 36 passengers and six crew members: Captain William A. Scott, First Officer William "Bill" J. Rataczak, flight engineer Harold E. Anderson, and flight attendants Alice Hancock, Tina Mucklow, and Florence Schaffner. The flight left Portland on time at 2:50 p.m. Pacific Standard Time (PST). Shortly after takeoff, Cooper gave a note to flight attendant Schaffner, who sat in a special seat near the back of the plane. Schaffner thought the note was a phone number and put it in her purse. Cooper then whispered, "Miss, you’d better look at that note. I have a bomb."
Schaffner opened the note. It was written in all capital letters with a felt-tip pen: "Miss—I have a bomb in my briefcase and want you to sit by me." Schaffner returned the note to Cooper, sat next to him, and asked to see the bomb. Cooper opened his attaché case, and Schaffner saw what looked like a bomb: a large cylindrical battery connected by wires to two rows of four red cylinders she thought were dynamite.
Cooper closed the case and told Schaffner his demands. Schaffner wrote them down and gave the note to the pilots. Captain Scott told Schaffner to stay in the cockpit and record events. He then informed Northwest Airlines in Minnesota of Cooper’s demands: $200,000 in a knapsack by 5:00 p.m., two front parachutes, and two back parachutes. By asking for two sets of parachutes, Cooper suggested he might take a hostage, so authorities would not give him fake equipment.
With Schaffner in the cockpit, flight attendant Mucklow sat next to Cooper to communicate with the crew. Cooper added more demands: after landing, fuel trucks must meet the plane, and all passengers must stay seated while Mucklow brought the money aboard. Cooper said he would release the passengers after receiving the money. The last items brought on board would be the four parachutes.
Scott told Sea-Tac air traffic control about the situation. They contacted the Seattle Police Department (SPD) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Passengers were told their arrival in Seattle would be delayed due to a "minor mechanical difficulty." Donald Nyrop, president of Northwest Airlines, approved the ransom payment and ordered employees to follow Cooper’s demands. For about two hours, Flight 305 circled Puget Sound to allow the SPD and FBI time to gather the money, parachutes, and emergency personnel.
On the plane, Cooper demanded Mucklow stay by his side. Mucklow later said Cooper seemed familiar with the area. He pointed out Tacoma from the window as the plane flew above it. When Mucklow told Cooper the parachutes were coming from McChord Air Force Base, he correctly noted it was only a 20-minute drive from Sea-Tac. Mucklow described Cooper as calm and polite, not nervous or cruel.
While the plane circled Seattle, Mucklow talked to Cooper and asked why he chose Northwest Airlines. Cooper said it was not because he had a grudge against the airline, but because the flight suited his needs. He asked where Mucklow was from; she said she was originally from Pennsylvania but lived in Minneapolis. Cooper said Minnesota was "very nice country." Mucklow asked where Cooper was from, but he refused to answer. He also offered Mucklow a cigarette, though she had quit smoking.
FBI records mention Cooper briefly spoke to an unidentified passenger during the flight. Passenger George Labissoniere said he visited the restroom behind Cooper several times. He saw a man in a cowboy hat questioning Mucklow about the delay. Cooper seemed upset and told the man to return to his seat, but the man ignored him. Labissoniere said he persuaded the man to go back. Mucklow said a passenger asked for a magazine and later returned it. She said Cooper joked, "If that is a sky marshal, I don’t want any more of that," but Mucklow assured him no sky marshals were on the flight. The man was never identified.
The $200,000 ransom was delivered from Seattle First National Bank in a bag weighing about 19 pounds (8.5 kg). The money was 10,000 unmarked $20 bills, as Cooper requested. Most bills had serial numbers starting with "L," indicating they came from the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. The FBI photographed the money on microfilm. The SPD got the front parachutes from a local skydiving school and the back parachutes from a local stunt pilot.
At 5:24 p.m. PST, Captain Scott was told the parachutes had arrived at Sea-Tac. He informed Cooper the plane would land soon. At 5:46 p.m. PST, Flight 305 landed. Cooper allowed the plane to park on a partially lit runway away from the terminal. He demanded only one airline representative bring the parachutes and money, and the only entrance and exit would be through the front door.
Northwest’s Seattle operations manager, Al Lee, was chosen to deliver the items. To avoid confusion, he wore civilian clothes instead of his uniform. A ground crew attached a boarding stair. Mucklow exited the plane and retrieved the money bag, carrying it past the seated passengers to Cooper. Cooper then agreed to release the passengers. As they left the plane, Cooper checked the money.
Investigation
In addition to 66 hidden fingerprints found on the plane, FBI agents found Cooper’s black clip-on tie, tie clip, and two of the four parachutes. One parachute had been opened, and three of its lines were cut from the canopy. Investigators talked to people who saw the hijacking in Portland, Seattle, and Reno, and created sketches based on their descriptions. Local and federal officials began asking people who might be suspects. In a hurry to meet a deadline, reporter James Long from The Oregon Journal wrote the name “Dan Cooper” as “D. B. Cooper.” Another reporter, Clyde Jabin, repeated this mistake, and the name “D. B. Cooper” became widely used.
Because the hijacker might have used his real name or an alias from a past crime, Portland police talked to a local man named D. B. Cooper. This man had a small police record but was quickly ruled out as a suspect. Finding the exact area to search was difficult because many factors were unknown. The 727’s speed estimates changed, weather conditions along the flight path varied, and only Cooper knew how long he fell before pulling his parachute. Pilots flying F-106 planes did not see anyone jumping from the airliner, and their radar did not detect a parachute. A man wearing black clothes jumping into a moonless night would be hard to see, especially with poor visibility, clouds, and no lights on the ground. Pilots flying T-33 planes also did not see the 727.
On December 6, 1971, 12 days after the hijacking, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover approved using a U.S. Air Force SR-71 Blackbird to retrace and photograph Flight 305’s path and look for items Cooper carried. The SR-71 made five flights, but the poor weather made the search unsuccessful. In an experiment, FBI agents used the same type of plane as the hijacking and pushed a 200-pound sled out of the plane. This helped them understand the movement of the plane’s tail and the cabin pressure change described by the flight crew. Early estimates placed Cooper’s landing area near the southern end of Mount St. Helens, a few miles southeast of Ariel, Washington, near Lake Merwin, an artificial lake. Search efforts focused on Clark and Cowlitz counties, covering land around the Lewis River in Southwest Washington. FBI agents and sheriff’s deputies searched large forested areas on foot and by helicopter. They also checked farmhouses and used patrol boats to search Lake Merwin and Yale Lake. Nothing related to Cooper was found.
Using planes and helicopters from the Oregon Army National Guard, the FBI searched the entire flight path, called Victor 23 in aviation terms, from Seattle to Reno. Many broken tree tops and objects like plastic pieces were found, but nothing connected to the hijacking was discovered. In early 1972, after snow melted, FBI agents and about 200 soldiers from Fort Lewis, along with Air Force personnel, National Guardsmen, and volunteers, searched Clark and Cowlitz counties for 18 days in March and another 18 days in April. A marine salvage company used a submarine to search Lake Merwin’s 200-foot depths. Two women found a skeleton in an abandoned building in Clark County, which was later identified as the remains of Barbara Ann Derry, a teenager who had been kidnapped and killed weeks earlier by a suspected serial killer. No evidence related to the hijacking was found.
Early computer estimates for the FBI placed Cooper’s landing area between the Lewis River dam to the north and the town of Battle Ground, Washington, to the south. In March 1972, after working with Northwest Orient Airlines and the Air Force, the FBI believed Cooper jumped over La Center, Washington. In 2019, the FBI released a report about a grocery store burglary near Heisson, Washington, three hours after Cooper jumped. Heisson, an unincorporated community, was within the area Northwest Orient Airlines had calculated for the FBI. The report noted the burglar took only survival items like beef jerky and gloves, but the burglar wore “military-type boots with a corrugated sole,” while Cooper was described as wearing slip-on shoes.
One month after the hijacking, the FBI shared the serial numbers of the ransom money with banks, casinos, racetracks, businesses that handle large cash amounts, and law enforcement worldwide. Northwest Orient Airlines offered a reward of 15% of the recovered money, up to $25,000. In early 1972, U.S. Attorney General John N. Mitchell made the serial numbers public. Two men used fake $20 bills with Cooper’s serial numbers to trick a Newsweek reporter, Karl Fleming, into giving them $30,000 in exchange for an interview with someone they claimed was the hijacker.
In early 1973, The Oregon Journal republished the serial numbers and offered $1,000 (equivalent to $7,253 in 2025) for the first person to turn in a ransom bill to the newspaper or FBI. The Seattle Post-Intelligencer offered a $5,000 reward. These offers stayed active until Thanksgiving 1974, but no real bills were found. In 1975, Northwest Orient Airlines’s insurance company, Global Indemnity Co., paid the airline’s $180,000 (equivalent to $1,100,000 in 2025) claim for the missing ransom money.
Flight data analysis showed the first estimated landing area was incorrect. The pilot flying the plane manually because of Cooper’s speed and altitude demands, Captain Scott, said the flight path was farther east than originally reported. Additional data from Continental Airlines pilot Tom Bohan, who was flying four minutes behind Flight 305, led the FBI to recalculate Cooper’s landing area. Bohan noted the FBI’s earlier estimates used incorrect wind direction data, making them inaccurate.
Using Bohan’s data and new calculations, the FBI believed Cooper’s landing area was likely over the Washougal River watershed. In 1986, FBI Agent Ralph Himmelsbach said, “I have to confess, if I were going to look for Cooper… I would head for the Washougal.” Searches of the Washougal Valley and nearby areas found no evidence of the hijacking. The FBI believes any physical clues were likely destroyed during Mount St. Helens’ 1980 eruption.
On July 8, 2016, the FBI announced the active investigation into the D.B. Cooper case was suspended, citing the need to focus on more urgent issues. Local FBI offices would still accept tips or information about the case.
Physical evidence
During their search of the aircraft, FBI agents found four important pieces of evidence directly connected to D.B. Cooper: a black clip-on tie, a tie clip made of mother-of-pearl, a strand of hair from the headrest, and eight cigarette butts from the ashtray.
The black clip-on tie was found in seat 18-E, where Cooper had sat. A gold tie clip with a circular mother-of-pearl center was attached to the tie. The FBI learned the tie was sold only at JCPenney stores but was no longer available after 1968. By the late 2000s, the FBI created a partial DNA profile from samples on the tie found in 2001, but they could not prove the DNA came from Cooper. FBI Agent Fred Gutt explained, "The tie had small and one large DNA sample, but it is hard to know for sure what they mean." The FBI also shared new evidence, including Cooper’s ticket, sketches, and a request for help identifying him.
In 2009, a group of researchers called the Cooper Research Team (CRT) used tools like GPS and satellite images to look into the case again. The team included scientists, artists, and engineers. They studied hundreds of tiny particles on Cooper’s tie. Using a special microscope, they found spores from a plant called Lycopodium, which might have come from medicine. They also found small pieces of titanium, bismuth, antimony, and other metals. These materials suggested Cooper might have worked at Boeing, a chemical plant, or a metal factory.
The most important finding was the titanium, which was rare in the 1970s and used mainly in aircraft or chemical industries. Scientists linked some metals to Boeing’s projects or factories that made parts for old TVs.
The FBI found two hair samples in Cooper’s seat: one from a limb and one from the head. The limb hair was not useful for identification, but the head hair was saved for future tests. In 2002, the FBI tried to build a DNA profile but lost the hair sample.
In the ashtray, FBI agents found eight cigarette butts from Raleigh brand cigarettes. The butts were sent to the FBI lab, but no fingerprints were found. The butts were returned to the Las Vegas office, and later, they were destroyed while in their care.
In 1980, an 8-year-old boy named Brian Ingram found three bundles of cash near the Columbia River. The money had been damaged by water and time but was still tied with rubber bands. FBI experts confirmed it was part of the ransom money Cooper had taken. Scientists thought the money had been washed into the river by water, not buried on purpose. This supported the idea that Cooper landed near the Washougal River, not in other nearby areas.
Later studies showed the money was not in the river or buried dry when Cooper took it in 1971. Scientists found tiny plants called diatoms on the bills, which only grow in spring. This meant the money entered the river months after the hijacking.
During the hijacking, Cooper received four parachutes: two main and two backup. The backup parachutes came from a local skydiving school, and the main ones came from a pilot named Norman Hayden. A parachute expert packed all four. He said the main parachutes were like military ones, opening automatically and not steerable. When the plane landed, FBI agents found one backup and one main parachute left behind. The backup parachute had been used, and some parts were cut, but the main parachute was still intact.
Theories, hypotheses and conjecture
During the 45 years the FBI investigated the case, they sometimes shared some of their ideas and possible answers based on what people saw and the few physical clues they had.
In the first year of the investigation, the FBI used descriptions from passengers and flight crew to create a drawing of the hijacker, known as Composite A. This sketch was made a few days after the hijacking and released on November 28, 1971. Witnesses joked that Composite A looked like the singer Bing Crosby because it did not match the hijacker’s appearance. The sketch showed a young man with a narrow face and did not capture the hijacker’s calm, uninterested expression. Flight attendant Florence Schaffner told the FBI that Composite A was not a good likeness of the hijacker.
After many witnesses said Composite A was not accurate, FBI artists created a second sketch, Composite B, in late 1972. This version aimed to better match the hijacker’s age, skin color, and face shape. Witnesses said Composite B was more accurate, but some thought it looked too angry or rough. A flight attendant said it resembled a "hoodlum" and noted the hijacker seemed more refined. Others said Composite B showed a man older than the hijacker with lighter skin.
Using feedback about Composite B, FBI artists improved the sketch. On January 2, 1973, the FBI released the revised Composite B, their third sketch. A flight attendant said the new sketch looked very similar to the hijacker, and another said the hijacker would be easily recognized from it. In April 1973, the FBI concluded that the revised Composite B was the best likeness they could create and called it the official sketch of the hijacker.
Flight attendants Florence Schaffner and Mucklow, who spent the most time with the hijacker, gave nearly identical descriptions: a man in his mid-40s, about 5 feet 10 inches to 6 feet tall, weighing 170 to 180 pounds, with olive-toned skin, brown eyes, short black hair, and no noticeable accent. University of Oregon student Bill Mitchell, who sat across from the hijacker during the flight, provided detailed descriptions that became part of Composite B. Mitchell said the hijacker was 5 feet 9 inches to 5 feet 10 inches tall. Since Mitchell was 6 feet 2 inches tall, he described himself as much taller than the hijacker and called him "slight." Robert Gregory, another passenger who gave a full description, also said the hijacker was about 5 feet 9 inches tall. Gregory believed the hijacker was of Mexican American or Native American descent.
In May 1973, the FBI released an eight-page report about the hijacker. It suggested he was a military-trained parachutist, not a sports skydiver, because he knew about military parachutes and his age would make him unusual in the skydiving community. Witnesses described the hijacker as athletic, so the FBI thought he likely exercised regularly.
FBI experts believed the hijacker was a U.S. Air Force veteran familiar with Seattle and the surrounding area. He correctly identified Tacoma as the plane circled Puget Sound and knew about McChord Air Force Base’s location near Sea-Tac Airport, details most civilians would not know. His behavior—such as his vocabulary, planning, and use of aviation terms—led the FBI to think he was not a common criminal but an intelligent, careful planner who worked independently. Experts also thought he was in financial trouble because people who steal large amounts of money usually do so out of urgent need. The FBI considered but dismissed the idea that the hijacker was a "thrill seeker" who wanted to prove something.
The FBI noted that the hijacker spilled the only drink he was served and never asked for another, suggesting he was not a heavy drinker or alcoholic. Calculations based on the number of cigarettes he smoked during the hijacking led the FBI to believe he smoked about one pack of cigarettes a day. Some thought the hijacker used the name "Dan Cooper," inspired by a fictional character from a comic book. The comic was not translated into English, but some believed the hijacker encountered it during a European tour and spoke fluent French. The comic’s popularity in Quebec also led to speculation that the hijacker might have been French Canadian, as many Quebec residents speak English without an accent. The use of the phrase "negotiable American currency" also suggested the hijacker had a non-U.S. background.
Based on evidence and the hijacker’s actions, the FBI believed he carefully planned the hijacking using detailed knowledge of aviation, local geography, and the Boeing 727’s features. He chose a seat in the last row of the rear cabin to observe the front, avoid being approached from behind, and stay unnoticed. To prevent being given sabotaged equipment, he demanded four parachutes, making it seem he might force hostages to jump with him. The FBI noted that his choice of a bomb instead of other weapons used by hijackers helped prevent others from rushing him.
The hijacker was careful to avoid leaving evidence. Before jumping, he asked flight attendant Mucklow to return any notes he had written or received. Mucklow used the last match from his matchbook to light a cigarette and tried to throw the matchbook away, but the hijacker made her return it. Despite his efforts, he left his clip-on tie in his seat. The FBI believed he knew the Boeing 727’s capabilities and design, and the aircraft’s features, such as its aft airstair and engine placement, were key reasons he chose it.
Suspects
Between 1971 and 2016, the FBI investigated more than a thousand "important suspects," including some who sought attention and others who confessed to crimes near the end of their lives.
Theodore Burdette Braden Jr. (1928–2007) was a U.S. Special Forces soldier during the Vietnam War, a skilled skydiver, and a person convicted of breaking the law. Many people in the Special Forces community believed he was the hijacker known as D.B. Cooper. Braden was born in Ohio and joined the military in 1944 at age 16, serving with the 101st Airborne during World War II. He became one of the military’s top parachutists, competing internationally and making 911 jumps. In the 1960s, he led teams in the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam – Studies and Observations Group (MACVSOG), a secret unit of Green Berets that carried out special missions in Vietnam. He also taught skydiving techniques to members of Project DELTA. Braden spent 23 months in Vietnam, working on classified missions in North and South Vietnam, as well as Laos and Cambodia.
In December 1966, Braden left his unit in Vietnam and traveled to the Congo to work as a mercenary. He was arrested by CIA agents and returned to the U.S. for a court-martial. Even though deserting in wartime was a serious crime, Braden received an honorable discharge and was banned from rejoining the military in exchange for keeping secrets about the MACVSOG program. A magazine article from 1967 described Braden as someone who often took unnecessary risks, such as ignoring safety rules during skydiving. The article also said he was involved in secret deals to earn money during his time in Vietnam.
Little is known about Braden’s life after he left the military in 1967. At the time of the hijacking, he was a truck driver for Consolidated Freightways, based in Vancouver, Washington, near a location where D.B. Cooper was believed to have dropped off the ransom. In the early 1970s, the FBI investigated Braden for allegedly stealing $250,000 in a trucking scam. In 1980, he was charged with transporting stolen goods from Arizona to Massachusetts. It is unclear if he was convicted. Braden was later arrested in Pennsylvania for driving a stolen car with fake license plates and without a driver’s license. He was sent to federal prison in the late 1980s, though the exact reason for his imprisonment is unknown.
Despite his skills as a soldier, Braden was not widely liked. A family member described him as having high intelligence but also a tendency toward criminal behavior. His military records show he was 5 feet 8 inches tall, which is shorter than the height given by two flight attendants who saw the hijacker. However, his military measurements were taken without shoes, so he may have appeared taller when wearing them. Braden had a dark complexion, short dark hair, an athletic build, and was 43 years old at the time of the hijacking, all of which match descriptions of D.B. Cooper.
In 2003, Lyle Christiansen, a man from Minnesota, saw a documentary about the D.B. Cooper case and believed his late brother, Kenneth (1926–1994), was the hijacker. After failing to convince the FBI and filmmaker Nora Ephron, Christiansen contacted a private investigator, Skipp Porteous, in New York City. In 2010, Porteous wrote a book suggesting Kenneth Christiansen was the hijacker. A television show later discussed evidence linking Kenneth Christiansen to the case.
Kenneth Christiansen joined the U.S. Army in 1944 and trained as a paratrooper. He was deployed in 1945, but World War II had already ended by then. He made training jumps in Japan during the late 1940s. After leaving the army, he worked for Northwest Orient Airlines, starting as a laborer in the Far East and later becoming a flight attendant and purser in Seattle.
Christiansen was 45 years old when the hijacking happened, but he was shorter (5 feet 8 inches) and thinner (150 pounds) than eyewitnesses described. He smoked and liked bourbon, both of which matched the hijacker’s habits. A flight attendant said photos of Christiansen looked more like the hijacker than other suspects, but she could not confirm it. The FBI says Christiansen is not a strong suspect because his appearance does not match eyewitness descriptions and no direct evidence links him to the crime.
Bryant "Jack" Coffelt (1917–1975) was a fraudster, former criminal, and someone who claimed to be a government informant. He said he was the driver and friend of Abraham Lincoln’s last known descendant, Robert Todd Lincoln Beckwith. In 1972, Coffelt claimed he was D.B. Cooper and tried to sell his story to a Hollywood company through a former prison friend. He said he landed near Mount Hood, about 50 miles from Ariel, and lost the ransom money. Photos of Coffelt resemble the composite drawings of the hijacker, though he was older in 1971. He was in Portland on the day of the hijacking and had leg injuries that could have come from a skydiving accident. The FBI reviewed his story and found it did not match known facts, calling it fake. His friend continued promoting the story after Coffelt died in 1975. News programs like 60 Minutes considered and rejected his claims.
Lynn Doyle "L. D." Cooper (1931–1999), a leatherworker and Korean War veteran, was suggested as a suspect in 2011 by his niece, Marla Cooper. As a child, Marla remembered her uncle and another relative talking about a "very mischievous" plan involving expensive walkie-talkies at her grandmother’s home in Sisters, Oregon, 150 miles from Portland. The next day, Flight 305 was hijacked. L. D. Cooper returned home wearing a bloody shirt, saying it came from a car accident. Later, Marla’s parents believed her uncle was the hijacker. She also said her uncle, who died in 1999, was fascinated by the Canadian coast.
Similar hijackings
Cooper was one of the first people to try hijacking an airplane to get money. Eleven days before Cooper's hijacking, a Canadian named Paul Joseph Cini hijacked an Air Canada DC-8 over Montana. However, the crew stopped him when he put down his shotgun to put on his parachute. After Cooper's hijacking, 15 similar hijackings happened in 1972. These hijackings included demands for money and parachutes, but none were successful. Out of 31 total hijackings that year, 19 followed Cooper's method of demanding money.
In 1973, airports started checking all luggage, which greatly reduced the number of hijackings. No other hijackers copied Cooper's methods until July 11, 1980, when Glenn K. Tripp took control of Northwest Orient Flight 608 at Seattle-Tacoma Airport. He asked for $600,000 (or $100,000 by another account), two parachutes, and the killing of his boss. A flight attendant added medicine to Tripp's drink to calm him. After a 10-hour standoff, Tripp reduced his demands to three cheeseburgers and a vehicle to escape. He was then captured.
Tripp tried to hijack the same flight again on January 21, 1983, and asked to be flown to Afghanistan. When the plane landed in Portland, FBI agents shot and killed him.
Aftermath
In 1972, even though the federal Sky Marshal program had started the year before, there were 31 hijackings in U.S. airspace. Of these, 19 were meant to steal money, and in 15 of those cases, hijackers also asked for parachutes. In early 1973, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) required airlines to check all passengers and their luggage. Although some lawsuits claimed these checks violated the Fourth Amendment rights against unlawful searches, federal courts said the checks were allowed if applied to everyone and limited to looking for weapons and explosives. In 1973, only two hijackings were attempted, both by people with mental health issues. One hijacker, Samuel Byck, planned to crash an airplane into the White House to harm President Nixon.
Because of many "copycat" hijackings in 1972, the FAA required all Boeing 727 planes to have a special device called the "Cooper vane" on the outside. This device is a flat aluminum blade attached to a pivot. It stays out of the way when the plane is not moving but automatically moves into place during flight to stop the rear airstair door from opening. The device works automatically and cannot be controlled from inside the plane. Because of the hijacking, all cockpit doors were required to have small windows, called peepholes, so pilots could see passengers without opening the door.
In 1978, the hijacked Boeing 727-100 was sold by Northwest Orient Airlines to Piedmont Airlines. It was re-registered as N838N and used for domestic flights. In 1984, the plane was bought by Key Airlines, re-registered as N29KA, and used by the Air Force to transport workers between Nellis Air Force Base and the Tonopah Test Range during the F-117 Nighthawk development program. In 1996, the plane was taken apart for parts in a Memphis aircraft scrapyard.
The flight crew praised Mucklow for her actions. She continued working for the airline for several years. She lived a private life and has only given a few interviews since 2021.
In popular culture
Himmelsbach called Cooper a "rotten sleazy crook," but his unusual and daring crime inspired many people to admire him. This admiration showed up in songs, movies, and books. Stores sold T-shirts with the words "D. B. Cooper, Where Are You?" printed on them. Restaurants and bowling alleys in the Pacific Northwest have special events and sell souvenirs related to Cooper. A yearly event called "Cooper Day" took place at the Ariel General Store and Tavern every November from 1974 until 2015. The event ended when the bar closed after the owner, Dona Elliott, passed away.
Every year in late November, an event called CooperCon is held in Seattle, Washington. It was started in 2018 by researcher Eric Ulis and brings together people who study and are interested in Cooper. The event was first held in Vancouver, Washington, but moved to Seattle in 2023.